‘Green light’ turns red at Dover Shores

Susan McCormack

DOVER SHORES -- A mysterious letter endorsing the controversial “green

light” initiative was circulated within a recent Dover Shores Community

Association newsletter, but no one will own up to who wrote it or how it

was allowed to be distributed.

The board is sending a retraction to all residents, saying “a gross

error” has been committed because the letter was to be supplied as

“information only.”

“We’re not a political animal,” said Byron Romig, board president. “We

did not [vote to] endorse the ‘green light’ initiative. ... All we’re

trying to do is inform the community.”

Romig, who said he did not write the letter, added, “We’re not on either

side [of the issue].”

Homeowner associations are not allowed to endorse political campaigns or

issues.

And supporters of the initiative know this, said Phil Arst, one of the

most vocal leaders of the initiative.

Since he is president of the Community Association Alliance, which

represents about 5,000 families, Arst said he knows that such a group can

not take a political stand.

“In a community association, you can’t speak for everyone,” Arst said.

“While the mass might support the initiative, you just need a few against

it so that you can’t take a position.”

Arst added that he, too, has no idea who wrote the information and the

letter. The letter was signed by “The Dover Shores Board of

Directors.”Romig said the letter was brought to his attention last Friday

when a resident complained to him. The complaint was valid, Romig said,

because individual members of a community board may make endorsements,

but a board as a governing body may not.

The letter stated that the board “feels that we will heavily be impacted

by traffic on Pacific Coast Highway, Dover Drive and Irvine Avenue.”

“Your help is needed,” it continued and encouraged residents to circulate

the petition among their friends and send money to the initiative

proponents in an enclosed envelope.

Proponents are working to get the initiative on the March ballot. If

passed, it would require a majority of voters to approve major general

plan amendments, such as building more than 40,000 square feet of floor

area.

The board’s retraction states that this “incitive form with a cover

letter” is “not endorsed” by the board.

Romig said he doesn’t know how the cover letter got written. He said he

drafted a different cover letter, which was sent to someone in charge of

writing a newsletter for the association and then to the management

offices of the community.

“I don’t know how this thing got turned around,” he wrote to the

management office in asking it to distribute an immediate retraction.

Romig said his only suspect would be a proponent of the initiative who

could have requested that new information be added to his own letter.

But Arst defended his group, saying that he dropped off the petition and

return envelopes to Dover Shores’ management offices and had nothing to

do with the cover letter that was sent out with his materials.

The management offices had no comment.

Romig said the board will definitely discuss the mystery at an upcoming

meeting, but he does not expect the association to take any legal action.